3d captions with face tracking

ABSTRACT

Aspects of the present disclosure involve a system comprising a computer-readable storage medium storing at least one program and method for performing operations comprising: receiving, by one or more processors that implement a messaging application, a video feed from a camera of a user device; detecting, by the messaging application, a face in the video feed; in response to detecting the face in the video feed, retrieving a three-dimensional (3D) caption; modifying the video feed to include the 3D caption at a position in 3D space of the video feed proximate to the face; and displaying a modified video feed that includes the face and the 3D caption.

CLAIM OF PRIORITY

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.17/581,093, filed on Jan. 21, 2022, which is a continuation of U.S.patent application Ser. No. 16/721,418, filed on Dec. 19, 2019, whichare incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates generally to visual presentations andmore particularly to rendering virtual objects within a real-worldenvironment captured in a camera feed of a computing device.

BACKGROUND

Augmented reality (AR) refers to supplementing the view of real-worldobjects and environments with computer-generated graphics content.Virtual rendering systems can be used to create, view, and interact withengaging and entertaining AR experiences, in which 3D virtual objectgraphics content appears to be present in the real world. Virtualrendering systems are frequently implemented within mobile devices suchas smartphones and tablets.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the drawings, which are not necessarily drawn to scale, like numeralsmay describe similar components in different views. To easily identifythe discussion of any particular element or act, the most significantdigit or digits in a reference number refer to the figure number inwhich that element is first introduced. Some embodiments are illustratedby way of example, and not limitation, in the figures of theaccompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a messaging system for exchanging data(e.g., messages and associated content) over a network, according toexample embodiments.

FIG. 2 is block diagram illustrating further details regarding amessaging system, according to example embodiments.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating data which may be stored inthe database of the messaging system, according to example embodiments.

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram illustrating a structure of a messagegenerated by a messaging client application for communication, accordingto example embodiments.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating various components of athree-dimensional (3D) caption system, which may be provided as part ofthe messaging system, according to example embodiments.

FIGS. 6 and 7 are flowcharts illustrating example operations of the 3Dcaption system in performing a method for generating a message thatincludes a 3D caption, according to example embodiments.

FIGS. 8-11 are interface diagrams that illustrate various interfacesprovided by the messaging system, according to some example embodiments.

FIGS. 12A-12C are interface diagrams that illustrate various interfacesprovided by the messaging system, according to some example embodiments.

FIGS. 13A-13D are interface diagrams that illustrate various interfacesprovided by the messaging system, according to some example embodiments.

FIGS. 14A and 14B are interface diagrams that illustrate variousinterfaces provided by the messaging system, according to some exampleembodiments.

FIG. 15 is an interface diagram that illustrates an interface providedby the messaging system, according to some example embodiments.

FIGS. 16A and 16B are interface diagrams that illustrate variousinterfaces provided by the messaging system, according to some exampleembodiments.

FIGS. 17A and 17B are interface diagrams that illustrate variousinterfaces provided by the messaging system, according to some exampleembodiments.

FIGS. 18A-J are interface diagrams that illustrate various interfacesprovided by the messaging system, according to some example embodiments.

FIG. 19 is a block diagram illustrating a representative softwarearchitecture, which may be used in conjunction with various hardwarearchitectures herein described, according to example embodiments.

FIG. 20 is a block diagram illustrating components of a machine able toread instructions from a machine-readable medium (e.g., amachine-readable storage medium) and perform any one or more of themethodologies discussed herein, according to example embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The description that follows includes systems, methods, techniques,instruction sequences, and computing machine program products thatembody illustrative embodiments of the disclosure. In the followingdescription, for the purposes of explanation, numerous specific detailsare set forth in order to provide an understanding of variousembodiments of the inventive subject matter. It will be evident,however, to those skilled in the art, that embodiments of the inventivesubject matter may be practiced without these specific details. Ingeneral, well-known instruction instances, protocols, structures, andtechniques are not necessarily shown in detail.

Traditional virtual rendering systems can be subject to presentationproblems due to environmental conditions, user actions, unanticipatedvisual interruption between a camera and the object being rendered, andthe like. This can cause a virtual object to disappear or otherwisebehave erratically, which breaks the illusion of the virtual objectsbeing present in the real world. For example, a virtual rendering systemmay not present virtual objects in a consistent manner with respect toreal-world items as a user moves about through the real world.

Additionally, conventional virtual rendering systems are often lackingin functionality related to authoring AR content because theseconventional systems are not optimized for the limited display size ofmobile computing devices. As an example, conventional virtual renderingsystems are often limited to predefined 3D virtual objects and do notprovide users with the ability to create or edit these virtual objects.As another example, user interfaces of conventional virtual renderingsystems often require users to navigate between various views or windowsto access certain content-authoring functions. These systems usuallyprovide buttons or other interactive elements to facilitate navigationbetween views and windows, but the buttons and other interactiveelements often utilize much of the available display space, which mayobscure AR content being authored or require a user to navigate to yetanother window or view to inspect the AR content being authored. As aresult, the AR content authoring process provided by conventionalvirtual rendering systems may be a time-consuming and tedious processthat requires users to repeatedly shuffle through various views andwindows to ultimately produce content that may not meet the user'sexpectations.

Aspects of the present disclosure include systems, methods, techniques,instruction sequences, and computing machine program products forcreating virtual three-dimensional (3D) objects, such as a 3D caption,and rendering the virtual 3D objects within a camera feed, as if theyexist in real-world environments. For example, media overlays of 3Dcaptions can be generated by the system and displayed in conjunctionwith real-world environment content (e.g., images and/or video)generated by an image-capturing device (e.g., a digital camera). 3Dcaptions include one or more text characters (e.g., letters, symbols,and/or emojis). Users may use the 3D captioning functionality describedherein to augment image data (e.g., images and/or video) to describe,comment on, or provide additional meaning or context to the real-worldenvironment content. The system includes user interfaces toautomatically add 3D captions to an image or video based on context,such as time of day, day of the week, location and/or one or more wordsinput by a user. The system includes user interfaces to automaticallyaugment the 3D captions a user inputs with one or more graphicalelements, such as emojis, that represent the content of the 3D caption.

In these ways, these user interfaces improve upon interfaces of priorsystems and improve the operation of a device by providing greaterfunctionality and enhanced mechanisms for interaction such as byproviding a preview of 3D captions that are in progress as they will berendered within real-world environments, which allows users to make anydesired modification before committing. Given these improvements, thesystem may be particularly suitable in mobile device implementations inwhich a display screen size is limited.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example messaging system 100 forexchanging data (e.g., messages and associated content) over a network106. The messaging system 100 includes multiple client devices 102, eachof which hosts a number of applications including a messaging clientapplication 104. Each messaging client application 104 iscommunicatively coupled to other instances of the messaging clientapplication 104 and a messaging server system 108 via a network 106(e.g., the Internet).

Accordingly, each messaging client application 104 can communicate andexchange data with another messaging client application 104 and with themessaging server system 108 via the network 106. The data exchangedbetween messaging client applications 104, and between a messagingclient application 104 and the messaging server system 108, includesfunctions (e.g., commands to invoke functions) as well as payload data(e.g., text, audio, video, or other multimedia data).

The messaging server system 108 provides server-side functionality viathe network 106 to a particular messaging client application 104. Whilecertain functions of the messaging system 100 are described herein asbeing performed by either a messaging client application 104 or by themessaging server system 108, it will be appreciated that the location ofcertain functionality either within the messaging client application 104or the messaging server system 108 is a design choice. For example, itmay be technically preferable to initially deploy certain technology andfunctionality within the messaging server system 108, but to latermigrate this technology and functionality to the messaging clientapplication 104 where a client device 102 has a sufficient processingcapacity.

The messaging server system 108 supports various services and operationsthat are provided to the messaging client application 104. Suchoperations include transmitting data to, receiving data from, andprocessing data generated by the messaging client application 104. Thisdata may include message content, client device information, geolocationinformation, media annotation and overlays, message content persistenceconditions, social network information, and live event information, asexamples. Data exchanges within the messaging system 100 are invoked andcontrolled through functions available via user interfaces (UIs) of themessaging client application 104.

Turning now specifically to the messaging server system 108, anApplication Program Interface (API) server 110 is coupled to, andprovides a programmatic interface to, an application server 112. Theapplication server 112 is communicatively coupled to a database server118, which facilitates access to a database 120 in which is stored dataassociated with messages processed by the application server 112.

Dealing specifically with the API server 110, this server receives andtransmits message data (e.g., commands and message payloads) between theclient device 102 and the application server 112. Specifically, the APIserver 110 provides a set of interfaces (e.g., routines and protocols)that can be called or queried by the messaging client application 104 inorder to invoke functionality of the application server 112. The APIserver 110 exposes various functions supported by the application server112, including account registration, login functionality, the sending ofmessages, via the application server 112, from a particular messagingclient application 104 to another messaging client application 104, thesending of media files (e.g., images or video) from a messaging clientapplication 104 to the messaging server application 114, and forpossible access by another messaging client application 104, the settingof a collection of media data (e.g., story), the retrieval of suchcollections, the retrieval of a list of friends of a user of a clientdevice 102, the retrieval of messages and content, the adding anddeleting of friends to a social graph, the location of friends within asocial graph, opening an application event (e.g., relating to themessaging client application 104).

The application server 112 hosts a number of applications andsubsystems, including a messaging server application 114, an imageprocessing system 116, and a social network system 122. The messagingserver application 114 implements a number of message processingtechnologies and functions, particularly related to the aggregation andother processing of content (e.g., textual and multimedia content)included in messages received from multiple instances of the messagingclient application 104. As will be described in further detail, the textand media content from multiple sources may be aggregated intocollections of content (e.g., called stories or galleries). Thesecollections are then made available, by the messaging server application114, to the messaging client application 104. Other processor and memoryintensive processing of data may also be performed server-side by themessaging server application 114, in view of the hardware requirementsfor such processing.

The application server 112 also includes an image processing system 116that is dedicated to performing various image processing operations,typically with respect to images or video received within the payload ofa message at the messaging server application 114.

The social network system 122 supports various social networkingfunctions and services, and makes these functions and services availableto the messaging server application 114. To this end, the social networksystem 122 maintains and accesses an entity graph within the database120. Examples of functions and services supported by the social networksystem 122 include the identification of other users of the messagingsystem 100 with which a particular user has relationships or is“following,” and also the identification of other entities and interestsof a particular user.

The application server 112 is communicatively coupled to a databaseserver 118, which facilitates access to a database 120 in which isstored data associated with messages processed by the messaging serverapplication 114.

FIG. 2 is block diagram illustrating further details regarding themessaging system 100, according to example embodiments. Specifically,the messaging system 100 is shown to comprise the messaging clientapplication 104 and the application server 112, which in turn embody anumber of some subsystems, namely an ephemeral timer system 202, acollection management system 204, and an annotation system 206.

The ephemeral timer system 202 is responsible for enforcing thetemporary access to content permitted by the messaging clientapplication 104 and the messaging server application 114. To this end,the ephemeral timer system 202 incorporates a number of timers that,based on duration and display parameters associated with a message, orcollection of messages (e.g., a story), selectively display and enableaccess to messages and associated content via the messaging clientapplication 104.

The collection management system 204 is responsible for managingcollections of media (e.g., collections of text, image, video, and audiodata). In some examples, a collection of content (e.g., messages,including images, video, text, and audio) may be organized into an“event gallery” or an “event story.” Such a collection may be madeavailable for a specified time period, such as the duration of an eventto which the content relates. For example, content relating to a musicconcert may be made available as a “story” for the duration of thatmusic concert. The collection management system 204 may also beresponsible for publishing an icon that provides notification of theexistence of a particular collection to the user interface of themessaging client application 104.

The collection management system 204 furthermore includes a curationinterface 208 that allows a collection manager to manage and curate aparticular collection of content. For example, the curation interface208 enables an event organizer to curate a collection of contentrelating to a specific event (e.g., delete inappropriate content orredundant messages). Additionally, the collection management system 204employs machine vision (or image recognition technology) and contentrules to automatically curate a content collection. In certainembodiments, compensation may be paid to a user for inclusion ofuser-generated content into a collection. In such cases, the curationinterface 208 operates to automatically make payments to such users forthe use of their content.

The annotation system 206 provides various functions that enable a userto annotate or otherwise modify or edit media content associated with amessage. For example, the annotation system 206 provides functionsrelated to the generation and publishing of media overlays for messagesprocessed by the messaging system 100. The annotation system 206operatively supplies a media overlay (e.g., a filter or LENS) to themessaging client application 104. In another example, the annotationsystem 206 operatively supplies a media overlay to the messaging clientapplication 104 based on other information, such as social networkinformation of the user of the client device 102. A media overlay mayinclude audio and visual content and visual effects. Examples of audioand visual content include pictures, texts, logos, animations, and soundeffects. An example of a visual effect includes color overlaying.

The audio and visual content or the visual effects can be applied to amedia content item (e.g., a photo) at the client device 102. Forexample, the media overlay including text that can be overlaid on top ofan image or video generated by the client device 102. In anotherexample, the media overlay includes an identification of a locationoverlay (e.g., Venice beach), a name of a live event, or a name of amerchant overlay (e.g., Beach Coffee House).

The annotation system 206 includes a 3D caption system 210 that providesfunctionality to generate, display, and track virtual objects atpositions relative to the client device 102, within a 3D space capturedwithin a camera feed of the client device 102 (also referred to by thoseof ordinary skill in the art as a “camera stream,” “a video stream,” ora “video feed”). The virtual objects generated, displayed, and trackedby the 3D caption system 210 include 3D captions. A 3D caption is a 3Drepresentation of one or more text characters (e.g., letters, symbols,and emojis).

The 3D caption system 210 provides functionality to enable users toauthor, edit, and preview 3D captions. To this end, the 3D captionsystem 210 includes an editing interface 212 and a preview interface214. The editing interface 212 allows a user to author and edit a 3Dcaption. The editing interface 212 enables users to author 3D captionsusing keyboard input and enable users to edit 3D captions using keyboardinput and other types of input including touchscreen-based gestures. Insome cases, the users type text of a 3D caption in a 2D view and afterthe user selects a suitable option (e.g., a done option), the 2D text isconverted to a 3D caption according to any font, color and/or stylecharacteristics selected by the user. The preview interface 214 allows auser to preview and review a 3D caption before generating a message thatincludes the 3D caption. The preview interface 214 may also enable theuser to edit the presentation of the 3D captions (e.g., by changing ascale, orientation, placement, font, style, and/or color of the 3Dcaption).

The 3D caption system 210 may cause a 3D caption to be displayed (e.g.,on a display of the client device 102) at position in a 3D spacecaptured within the camera feed based on a reference surface (e.g., theground) detected in the 3D space. As will be discussed in further detailbelow, the 3D caption system 210 comprises a redundant tracking systemcomprising a set of tracking subsystems configured to track a 3D captionat a position in 3D space based on a set of tracking indicia, andtransition between tracking subsystems. The 3D caption system 210 mayfurther transition between tracking with six degrees of freedom (6DoF)and tracking with three degrees of freedom (3DoF) based on anavailability of the tracking indicia.

In some embodiments, the 3D caption system 210 includes a face detectionand/or tracking component. The 3D caption system 210 may receive anindication from the face detection component that a face is detected ina camera feed being received and displayed. In such cases, the 3Dcaption system 210 automatically positions the 3D caption in closeproximity to the face. For example, the 3D caption system 210 may curvethe 3D caption around the top of the face (e.g., in the shape of acrown), the bottom of the face or on the forehead of the person depictedin the camera feed. As the user moves the camera around, the face may nolonger be detected by the face detection component. As a result, the 3Dcaption system 210 may move the 3D caption from being placed inproximity to the face to being placed on a suitable reference surface(e.g., the ground). When the camera pans back to reveal the face again,the 3D caption system 210 automatically moves and transitions display ofthe 3D caption from the reference surface to being in close proximity tothe face. When the 3D caption is positioned in proximity to the face inthe camera feed, the 3D caption system 210 activates the face trackingcomponent to continuously adjust the position of the 3D caption relativeto changes in positions of the face. For example, as the face moves upand down, the 3D caption also moves up and down to keep its placement ontop of or underneath the face in the camera feed.

In some cases, the 3D caption system 210 detects more than one face inthe same frame or image of the camera feed. In such circumstances, the3D caption system 210 computes how many pixels are in each of the facesrelative to the total number of pixels in the frame or image. The 3Dcaption system 210 may then place the 3D caption in close proximity to agiven face of the one or more faces that has the greater number ofpixels relative to the total number of pixels. Namely, the 3D captionsystem 210 may position the 3D caption in close proximity (e.g., aboveor below) the face that is largest in size relative to other faces inthe image.

In some embodiments, the 3D caption system 210 determines whether afront-facing camera of the client device 102 is being used to captureand display the video feed or a rear-facing camera is being used. Thefront-facing camera is a camera integrated on a same side of the clientdevice 102 as the display screen and points towards the user. Therear-facing camera (world camera) is a camera pointing away from theuser and is on an opposing side from the front-facing camera. The 3Dcaption system 210 may determine that the front-facing camera is beingused and may determine that a face is not detected in the video feed. Insuch cases, the 3D caption system 210 may disable the 3D captionsfeature of the messaging client application 104.

In some embodiments, the 3D caption system 210 may determine that afront-facing camera is used to display the video feed. The 3D captionsystem 210 may detect a face in the video feed. The 3D caption system210 may present a 3D caption in close proximity to the face with orwithout graphical elements. While the 3D caption is presented in closeproximity to the face (e.g., as a crown on top of the head on which theface is depicted), the 3D caption system 210 may receive a user requestto activate the rear-facing camera. In response, the 3D caption system210 may start presenting a video feed being captured by the rear-facingcamera. The video feed may not include any faces, and in such cases the3D caption system 210 presents the same 3D caption that was presented inclose proximity to the face, on a surface depicted in the video feed ofthe rear-facing camera. When a face appears in the video feed of therear-facing camera, the 3D caption system 210 automatically transitionsand repositions the 3D caption in close proximity to the face thatappears in the video feed.

In some embodiments, the 3D caption system 210 automatically determinescontext of an environment of the client device 102. For example, the 3Dcaption system 210 determines the day of the week and/or time of day.Based on the context of the environment, the 3D caption system 210automatically selects text for insertion in the 3D caption. In responseto receiving input from a user requesting that a 3D caption be inserted(or without receiving input from the user), the 3D caption system 210presents the 3D caption with the text that is selected based on thecontext of the environment.

In some embodiments, the 3D caption system 210 enhances and augments the3D caption with one or more graphical elements (e.g., emojis or avatars)when a face is detected in the camera feed. For example, when the faceis detected in the camera, the 3D caption system places a 3D caption(with automatically populated text based on context or manually suppliedtext from the user) in close proximity to the face. The 3D captionsystem 210 also searches for one or more graphical elements based oncontext of the text in the 3D caption. Specifically, the 3D captionsystem 210 may automatically identify one or more words in the 3Dcaption that are associated in a database with one or more graphicalelements. For example, the 3D caption system 210 may determine that the3D caption includes the word “love” and may retrieve a heart emoji thatis associated with the word “love”. The 3D caption system 210 may placethe retrieved graphical elements on a left and a right side of the 3Dcaption to enclose the 3D caption with the graphical elements. Forexample, the 3D caption system 210 may display the word love in 3D abovethe user's face as a crown and place two heart emojis (one on the leftand one on the right) around the 3D caption. In some cases, the 3Dcaption system 210 may determine that none of the words or phrases inthe 3D caption matches or corresponds to words or phrases previouslyassociated with graphical elements. In such cases, the 3D caption system210 selects a default graphical element to populate into and add to the3D caption.

In some embodiments, the 3D caption system 210 determines that the videofeed being received and presented is being captured by the front-facingcamera of the client device 102. In such cases, the 3D caption system210 may determine whether a face is detected as being depicted in thevideo feed. If a face is detected in the video feed, the 3D captionsystem 210 automatically presents the one or more graphical elementswhen the user requests to add a 3D caption. Namely, after the 3D captionis added (either with automatically determined text or with textmanually input by the user), the 3D caption system 210 automaticallyadds the one or more graphical elements to the caption.

In some embodiments, the 3D caption system 210 determines that the videofeed being received and presented is being captured by the rear-facingcamera of the client device 102. In such cases, the 3D caption system210 may determine whether a face is detected as being depicted in thevideo feed. If a face is detected in the video feed, the 3D captionsystem 210 presents an option for the user to request to add one or moregraphical elements when the user requests to add a 3D caption. Namely,after the 3D caption is added (either with automatically determined textor with text manually input by the user), the 3D caption system 210provides an additional option for the user to select one or moregraphical elements to add to the caption. In this way, graphicalelements are automatically added to the 3D caption presented inproximity to a user's face when the video feed is being captured andreceived from the front-facing camera. When the video feed is beingcaptured and received from the rear-facing camera, the 3D caption system210 requests specific user instructions to add the graphical elements tothe 3D caption that is presented in proximity to the user's face in thevideo feed.

In some embodiments, the 3D caption system 210 may allow the user toselect the graphical elements in the camera feed that are displayed withthe 3D caption. In response to receiving a user selection of thegraphical element(s) (e.g., when the user taps on the displayedgraphical element), the 3D caption system 210 may display the text ofthe 3D caption in 2D together with a menu of a list of alternategraphical elements for the user to choose from. The 3D graphicalelements may continue to be displayed on the face without the 3D captionwhile the user selects a new graphical element from the list. Inresponse to receiving a user selection of the new graphical element fromthe list, the 3D caption system 210 replaces the previously displayedgraphical element with the selected graphical element and presents the3D caption with the new graphical element. For example, the user canselect a heart emoji that is displayed with the word “love” in the 3Dcaption. In response, a list of alternate graphical elements isdisplayed including a broken heart emoji. The user can select the brokenheart emoji and in response the 3D caption system 210 displays the 3Dcaption with the word “love” and two broken heart emojis on either sideof (e.g., on the left and right sides of) the 3D caption.

In some embodiments, the 3D caption system 210 may allow the user tomodify or edit the text of the 3D caption. To do so, the 3D captionsystem 210 may receive input from the user that selects the 3D caption(e.g., the user can tap on the 3D caption). In response, the 3D captionsystem 210 may display the text of the 3D caption in 2D and allow theuser to edit the text of the caption. The user can tap between any twoletters of the text to navigate a cursor to a position between the twoletters. The user can then add or delete characters starting from theposition between the two letters the user selected. In some cases, theuser can pinch the text in a 2D or 3D caption to adjust the size andlayout of the text or 3D caption. In some cases, adjusting the size andlayout of the text based on a pinch gesture may be enabled if the sizeof the text is wide enough (e.g., if there is a minimum of 4 or 5characters in the text). In some embodiments, in response to receiving auser request to edit the 3D caption, the 3D caption system 210automatically dims a display in which the 3D caption is presented.Namely, the 2D text is presented in a dimmer screen than the 3D captionto focus the user's attention on the 2D text.

In some embodiments, the user can modify attributes of the 2D text tomake changes to the 3D caption. For example, the user can modify a colorof the text and/or style of the text by selecting between a menu listingvarious styles and a separate menu listing various colors. In someembodiments, the 3D caption system 210 accesses a resource list of theclient device 102 to determine whether resources (e.g., memory,processing power, and/or bandwidth) of the client device 102 satisfy aminimum device resource threshold. In response to determining that theresources (e.g., memory, processing power, and/or bandwidth) of theclient device 102 satisfy the minimum device resource threshold, the 3Dcaption system 210 presents the menu of styles and/or colors for theuser to use to modify the attributes of the 3D caption. In response todetermining that the resources (e.g., memory, processing power, and/orbandwidth) of the client device 102 fail to satisfy the minimum deviceresource threshold, the 3D caption system 210 may not present the menuof styles and/or colors and may present the 3D caption with defaultattributes. In this way, the 3D caption system 210 conditionspresentation of the option for adjusting visual attributes of the 3Dcaption based on the device resources.

When the user completes editing the text, the user can select a doneoption and, in response, the 3D caption system 210 may display theedited or modified text back on the surface or face that is in thecamera feed. If the screen was dimmed while the user was editing the 2Dtext, the brightness of the screen may be restored to the brightnesssetting that was used to display the 3D caption prior to the userrequesting to edit the 3D caption. In some cases, a first brightnesssetting is always used to display text in 2D for modifying the text ofthe 3D caption and a different, second brightness setting that isgreater than the first brightness setting is used to present the 3Dcaption in the camera feed.

In some embodiments, the 3D caption system 210 stores a setting for eachuser indicating whether the given user has previously edited or accesseda 3D caption feature of the messaging client application 104. Inresponse to receiving a user request to add, modify, or access the 3Dcaption feature, the 3D caption system 210 may access the settings forthe user to determine whether the user is accessing the 3D captionfeature for the first time. In response to determining that the user isaccessing the 3D caption feature for the first time, the 3D captionsystem 210 may clear the setting to indicate that the user has notaccessed the 3D caption system. Also, in response to determining thatthe user is accessing the 3D caption feature for the first time, the 3Dcaption system 210 may present a 3D caption in the camera feed togetherwith an instructional animation (e.g., a 3D hint) on how to adjust the3D caption. In some embodiments, the instructional animation includes ahand that repeatedly points to the 3D caption (e.g., the text of the 3Dcaption) and moves in a particular direction (e.g., towards the user) toindicate to the user that the user can point a finger and tap on the 3Dcaption to drag and reposition the 3D caption. The instructionalanimation can be any suitable instruction that visually explains to theuser the options the user has to adjust or edit the 3D caption (e.g.,the instructional animation can repeatedly point to the 3D caption toinform the user that if the user taps on the 3D caption, the user canedit text of the caption). After the 3D caption system 210 receivesinput from the user that responds to the instructional animation toperform the action indicated by the instruction, the 3D caption system210 removes the instructional animation from the display and allows theuser to perform the requested action (e.g., adjusting a position ofand/or modifying the 3D caption).

In some embodiments, the 3D caption system 210 stores settings orattributes of the 3D caption for a threshold period of time (e.g., 30seconds) after the user finishes creating a message that includes the 3Dcaption. For example, the user can select a style, text, color, and/orgraphical elements to include in the 3D caption and place the 3D captionin a video feed. The 3D caption system 210 can then store a video clipor image that includes the 3D caption with the selected attributes tosend or share with another user in a message. After the video clip isstored, the 3D caption system 210 may receive a user request to accessthe 3D caption feature of the messaging client application 104. The 3Dcaption system 210 determines when the video clip was stored (e.g., byaccessing a timestamp of the video clip) and compares the time when thevideo clip was stored to the current time. If the video clip was storedmore than a threshold period of time, such as if the difference betweenthe current time and the creation time of the video clip exceeds athreshold, (e.g., if the 3D caption system 210 determines that athreshold amount of time has elapsed since the video segment wasstored), the 3D caption system 210 may present a caption editinginterface with default attributes (e.g., the user can input a new textstring and the text string may be presented with default color andstyle). If the video clip was stored less than the threshold amount oftime, such as if the difference between the current time and thecreation time is less than the threshold, the 3D caption system 210retrieves the 3D caption attributes last used by the user. For example,the 3D caption system 210 presents a 3D caption creation/modificationfeature with settings and attributes of the last caption the usercreated (e.g., the text of the last caption may be shown to the userwith the previously selected style and color). The user can then modifythe 3D caption and create a new segment with the modified 3D caption.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram 300 illustrating data, which may be storedin the database 120 of the messaging server system 108, according tocertain example embodiments. While the content of the database 120 isshown to comprise a number of tables, it will be appreciated that thedata could be stored in other types of data structures (e.g., as anobject-oriented database).

The database 120 includes message data stored within a message table314. An entity table 302 stores entity data, including an entity graph304. Entities for which records are maintained within the entity table302 may include individuals, corporate entities, organizations, objects,places, events, and so forth. Regardless of type, any entity regardingwhich the messaging server system 108 stores data may be a recognizedentity. Each entity is provided with a unique identifier, as well as anentity type identifier (not shown).

The entity graph 304 furthermore stores information regardingrelationships and associations between entities. Such relationships maybe social, professional (e.g., work at a common corporation ororganization), interested-based, or activity-based, merely for example.

The database 120 also stores annotation data, in the example form offilters and LENSES, in an annotation table 312. Filters and LENSES forwhich data is stored within the annotation table 312 are associated withand applied to videos (for which data is stored in a video table 310)and/or images (for which data is stored in an image table 308). Filtersare overlays that are displayed as overlaid on an image or video duringpresentation to a recipient user. LENSES include real-time visualeffects and/or sounds that may be added to real-world environmentsdepicted in a camera feed (e.g., while a user is viewing the camera feedvia one or more interfaces of the messaging system 100, while composinga message, or during presentation to a recipient user). In comparison,filters are applied to an image or video after the image or video iscaptured at the client device 102 while a LENS is applied to the camerafeed of the client device 102 such that when an image or video iscaptured at the client device 102 with a LENS applied, the applied LENSis incorporated as part of the image or video that is generated. Filtersand LENSES may be of various types, including user-selected filters andLENSES from a gallery of filters or a gallery of LENSES presented to asending user by the messaging client application 104 when the sendinguser is composing a message.

As mentioned above, the video table 310 stores video data which, in oneembodiment, is associated with messages for which records are maintainedwithin the message table 314. Similarly, the image table 308 storesimage data associated with messages for which message data is stored inthe entity table 302. The entity table 302 may associate variousannotations from the annotation table 312 with various images and videosstored in the image table 308 and the video table 310.

Graphical elements list 307 stores a list of different graphicalelements (e.g., emojis and/or avatars) that are associated withdifferent contexts. For example, the graphical elements list 307 maystore different emojis or paired emojis, each associated with adifferent context. Specifically, a happy face emoji or happy face emojipair may be associated with a happy context, a heart emoji may beassociated with a love context, a baseball or football emoji may beassociated with a sporting event and/or baseball or football context,and a broken heart emoji may be associated with a sad or broken heartcontext.

Contexts list 309 stores a list of different contexts associated withdifferent words or combinations of words. Graphical elements list 307stores a list of rules that the three-dimensional caption system 210uses to process a text string in a 2D/3D caption to derive or determinea context of the text string.

A story table 306 stores data regarding collections of messages andassociated image, video, or audio data, which are compiled into acollection (e.g., a story or a gallery). The creation of a particularcollection may be initiated by a particular user (e.g., each user forwhich a record is maintained in the entity table 302). A user may createa “personal story” in the form of a collection of content that has beencreated and sent/broadcast by that user. To this end, the UI of themessaging client application 104 may include an icon that isuser-selectable to enable a sending user to add specific content to hisor her personal story.

A collection may also constitute a “live story,” which is a collectionof content from multiple users that is created manually, automatically,or using a combination of manual and automatic techniques. For example,a “live story” may constitute a curated stream of user-submitted contentfrom various locations and events. Users whose client devices havelocation services enabled and are at a common location event at aparticular time may, for example, be presented with an option, via auser interface of the messaging client application 104, to contributecontent to a particular live story. The live story may be identified tothe user by the messaging client application 104, based on his or herlocation. The end result is a “live story” told from a communityperspective.

A further type of content collection is known as a “location story,”which enables a user whose client device 102 is located within aspecific geographic location (e.g., on a college or university campus)to contribute to a particular collection. In some embodiments, acontribution to a location story may require a second degree ofauthentication to verify that the end user belongs to a specificorganization or other entity (e.g., is a student on the universitycampus).

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram illustrating a structure of a message 400,according to some embodiments, generated by a messaging clientapplication 104 for communication to a further messaging clientapplication 104 or the messaging server application 114. The content ofa particular message 400 is used to populate the message table 314stored within the database 120, accessible by the messaging serverapplication 114. Similarly, the content of a message 400 is stored inmemory as “in-transit” or “in-flight” data of the client device 102 orthe application server 112. The message 400 is shown to include thefollowing components:

-   -   A message identifier 402: a unique identifier that identifies        the message 400.    -   A message text payload 404: text, to be generated by a user via        a user interface of the client device 102 and that is included        in the message 400.    -   A message image payload 406: image data, captured by a camera        component of a client device 102 or retrieved from memory of a        client device 102, and that is included in the message 400.    -   A message video payload 408: video data, captured by a camera        component or retrieved from a memory component of the client        device 102 and that is included in the message 400.    -   A message audio payload 410: audio data, captured by a        microphone or retrieved from the memory component of the client        device 102, and that is included in the message 400.    -   A message annotations 412: annotation data (e.g., filters,        stickers or other enhancements) that represents annotations to        be applied to message image payload 406, message video payload        408, or message audio payload 410 of the message 400.    -   A message duration parameter 414: parameter value indicating, in        seconds, the amount of time for which content of the message        (e.g., the message image payload 406, message video payload 408,        message audio payload 410) is to be presented or made accessible        to a user via the messaging client application 104.    -   A message geolocation parameter 416: geolocation data (e.g.,        latitudinal and longitudinal coordinates) associated with the        content payload of the message. Multiple message geolocation        parameter 416 values may be included in the payload, with each        of these parameter values being associated with respect to        content items included in the content (e.g., a specific image        into within the message image payload 406, or a specific video        in the message video payload 408).    -   A message story identifier 418: identifier value identifying one        or more content collections (e.g., “stories”) with which a        particular content item in the message image payload 406 of the        message 400 is associated. For example, multiple images within        the message image payload 406 may each be associated with        multiple content collections using identifier values.    -   A message tag 420: each message 400 may be tagged with multiple        tags, each of which is indicative of the subject matter of        content included in the message payload. For example, where a        particular image included in the message image payload 406        depicts an animal (e.g., a lion), a tag value may be included        within the message tag 420 that is indicative of the relevant        animal. Tag values may be generated manually, based on user        input, or may be automatically generated using, for example,        image recognition.    -   A message sender identifier 422: an identifier (e.g., a        messaging system identifier, email address, or device        identifier) indicative of a user of the client device 102 on        which the message 400 was generated and from which the message        400 was sent.    -   A message receiver identifier 424: an identifier (e.g., a        messaging system identifier, email address or device identifier)        indicative of a user of the client device 102 to which the        message 400 is addressed.

The contents (e.g., values) of the various components of message 400 maybe pointers to locations in tables within which content data values arestored. For example, an image value in the message image payload 406 maybe a pointer to (or address of) a location within an image table 308.Similarly, values within the message video payload 408 may point to datastored within a video table 310, values stored within the messageannotations 412 may point to data stored in an annotation table 312,values stored within the message story identifier 418 may point to datastored in a story table 306, and values stored within the message senderidentifier 422 and the message receiver identifier 424 may point to userrecords stored within an entity table 302.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating functional components of the 3Dcaption system 210 that configure the 3D caption system 210 to render 3Dcaptions in a 3D space (e.g., a real-world environment) depicted in alive camera feed. The 3D caption system 210 is shown as including arendering component 502, a tracking system 504, and a disruptiondetection component 506. The various components of the 3D caption system210 may be configured to communicate with each other (e.g., via a bus,shared memory, or a switch). Although not illustrated in FIG. 5 , insome embodiments, the 3D caption system 210 may include or may be incommunication with a front-facing or rear-facing camera configured toproduce a camera feed comprising image data that includes a sequence ofimages (e.g., a video).

Any one or more of the components described may be implemented usinghardware alone (e.g., one or more of the processors 508 of a machine) ora combination of hardware and software. For example, any componentdescribed of the 3D caption system 210 may physically include anarrangement of one or more of the processors 508 (e.g., a subset of oramong the one or more processors of the machine) configured to performthe operations described herein for that component. As another example,any component of the 3D caption system 210 may include software,hardware, or both, that configure an arrangement of one or moreprocessors 508 (e.g., among the one or more processors of the machine)to perform the operations described herein for that component.Accordingly, different components of the 3D caption system 210 mayinclude and configure different arrangements of such processors 508 or asingle arrangement of such processors 508 at different points in time.

Moreover, any two or more components of the 3D caption system 210 may becombined into a single component, and the functions described herein fora single component may be subdivided among multiple components.Furthermore, according to various example embodiments, componentsdescribed herein as being implemented within a single machine, database,or device may be distributed across multiple machines, databases, ordevices.

The tracking system 504 may comprise a first tracking sub-system 504A, asecond tracking sub-system 504B, and a third tracking sub-system 504C.Each tracking sub-system tracks the position of a 3D caption within the3D space based on a set of tracking indicia.

Tracking systems are subject to frequent tracking failure due toenvironmental conditions, user actions, unanticipated visualinterruption between camera and object/scene being tracked, and soforth. Traditionally, such tracking failures would cause a disruption inthe presentation of virtual objects in a 3D space. For example, avirtual object may disappear or otherwise behave erratically, therebyinterrupting the illusion of the virtual object being presented withinthe 3D space. This undermines the perceived quality of the 3D experienceas a whole.

Traditional tracking systems rely on a single approach (Natural FeatureTracking (NFT), Simultaneous Localization And Mapping (SLAM),Gyroscopic, etc.) that each have breaking points in real-world usage dueto inaccurate sensor data, movement, loss or occlusion of visual marker,or dynamic interruptions to a scene. Further, each approach may haveindividual limitations in capability. For example, a gyroscopic trackingsystem can only track items with 3DoF. Further, utilization of a singletracking system provides inaccurate or unstable position estimation, dueto inherent limitations of each individual system. For example, an NFTsystem may not provide sufficient pitch, yaw, or roll estimation due tothe inaccuracies of visual tracking alone, while gyroscopic trackingsystems provide inaccurate translation (up, down, left, right).

To address the foregoing issues with traditional tracking systems, the3D caption system 210 comprises multiple redundant tracking sub-systems504A-C that enable seamless transitions between tracking sub-systems.The multiple redundant tracking sub-systems 504A-C address the issueswith traditional tracking systems by merging multiple trackingapproaches into a single tracking system 504. The tracking system 504 isable to combine 6DoF and 3DoF tracking techniques through combining andtransitioning between multiple tracking systems based on theavailability of tracking indicia tracked by the tracking systems. Thus,as the indicia tracked by any one tracking system becomes unavailable,the 3D caption system 210 seamlessly switches between tracking in 6DoFand 3DoF, thereby providing the user with an uninterrupted experience.For example, in the case of visual tracking systems (e.g., NFT, SLAM),tracking indicia typically analyzed to determine orientation may bereplaced with gyroscopic tracking indicia from a gyroscopic trackingsystem. This would thereby enable transitioning between tracking in 6Dofand 3DoF based on the availability of tracking indicia.

In some example embodiments, to transition between tracking in 6DoF and3DoF, the 3D caption system 210 gathers and stores tracking indiciawithin a tracking matrix that includes translation indicia (e.g., up,down, left, right) and rotation indicia (e.g., pitch, yaw, roll). Thetranslation indicia gathered by an NFT system may thereby be extractedfrom the tracking matrix and utilized when future translation indiciagathered by the NFT system become inaccurate or unavailable. In themeantime, the rotation indicia continue to be provided by the gyroscope.In this way, when the mobile device loses tracking indicia, the trackedobjects that are presented in the 3D space will not be changed abruptlyat the frame when the tracking indicia are lost. Subsequently, when thetarget tracking object reappears in the screen, and a new translation T₁is obtained, the translation part of the view matrix will then be takingadvantage of the new translation T₁, and use T₁−T₀ as the translation ofthe view matrix.

The rendering component 502 of the 3D caption system 210 is configuredto generate and render 3D captions in a 3D space captured within a livecamera feed produced by a camera. For example, the rendering component502 may generate a 3D caption based on input received from a user (e.g.,keyboard input) and render the 3D caption in the 3D space capturedwithin the live camera feed. In rendering the 3D caption, the 3D captionsystem 210 assigns the 3D caption to a position in the 3D space based ona real-world reference surface detected in the 3D space. In some cases,the rendering component 502 automatically positions the 3D caption in 3Dspace on top of a user's head or under the user's head in response todetecting presence of a face in the camera feed. The rendering component502 automatically transitions the 3D caption to a reference surface(e.g., the ground) from being presented on top of or under the user'shead when the face is no longer presented in the camera feed (e.g.,because the user panned the camera right/left/up/down to a point wherethe face is no longer being picked up by the camera). Similarly, therendering component 502 automatically transitions the 3D caption tobeing presented on top of or under the user's head from being presentedon a reference surface (e.g., the ground) when the face is again (or forthe first time) presented in the camera feed (e.g., because the userpanned the camera right/left/up/down to a point where the face is beingpicked up by the camera).

The 3D caption system 210 may thereafter track the position of the 3Dcaption relative to a user device in the 3D space by one or moretracking systems in 6DoF. For example, the one or more tracking systemsof the 3D caption system 210 may collect and analyze a set of trackingindicia (e.g., roll, pitch, yaw, natural features, etc.) in order totrack the position of the 3D caption relative to the user device in the3D space with 6DoF. In such embodiments, the 3D caption system 210 maytransition between tracking systems based on the availability of thetracked indicia to maintain consistent tracking in 6DoF.

The disruption detection component 506 monitors tracking indicia todetect disruptions. Upon the disruption detection component 506detecting an interruption of one or more indicia, such that tracking in6DoF becomes unreliable or impossible, the 3D caption system 210transitions to tracking the 3D caption in the 3D space in 3DoF in orderto prevent an interruption of the display. For example, the 3D captionsystem 210 may transition from a first tracking system (or first set oftracking systems among the set of tracking systems) to a second trackingsystem among the set of tracking systems (or second set of trackingsystems), wherein the second tracking system is capable of tracking the3D caption with 3DoF in the 3D space, based on the tracking indiciaavailable.

In some example embodiments, the set of tracking systems of the 3Dcaption system 210 includes a gyroscopic tracking system, an NFT system,as well as a SLAM tracking system. Each tracking system among the set oftracking systems may analyze tracking indicia in order to track aposition of a virtual object within a 3D space. For example, to track avirtual object with 6DoF, the 3D caption system 210 may require at leastsix tracking indicia to be available. As tracking indicia becomeobstructed or unavailable for various reasons, the 3D caption system 210may transition between the available tracking systems among the set oftracking systems in order to maintain 6DoF, or transition to 3DoF ifnecessary.

It will be readily appreciated that the 3D caption system 210 providesconsistent rendered virtual objects (e.g., 3D captions) in real-world 3Dspaces in a wide variety of environments and situations. In manyapplications it can be desirable to provide firm consistency for thelocations of these virtual objects as one or more users, cameras, orother tracking items move around in the environment. This can involvethe recognition and use of a specific fixed reference point (e.g., afixed surface) in the real-world environment. Not using a fixedreference point or item can result in floating or other undesirableinconsistencies in the rendering and presentation of the virtualobjects.

To ensure firm consistency in the location of virtual objects,annotation data in the example form of a presentation LENS that isspecific for the 3D object tracking and rendering described herein maybe employed. In particular, a surface-aware LENS is a presentation LENSthat identifies and references a real-world surface (e.g., the ground)for the consistent rendering and presentation of virtual objects in 3Dspace. The surface-aware LENS can be a specific portion or subcomponentwithin the rendering component 502. This surface-aware LENS of therendering component 502 can be configured to recognize a referencesurface or face based on visual camera content, and may also utilizeother device inputs (e.g., gyroscope, accelerometer, compass) todetermine what is an appropriate surface within a 3D space depicted in alive camera feed. Once the reference surface or face has beendetermined, then a virtual object (e.g., a 3D caption) can beaccomplished with respect to that reference surface or face. In anexample, the reference surface in the 3D space is a ground surface. The3D caption system 210 may render the 3D caption at a position in the 3Dspace such that the caption appears to be on or slightly above the 3Dspace. In an example, the reference surface in the 3D space is a face orhead. The 3D caption system 210 may render the 3D caption at a positionin the 3D space such that the caption appears to be on top of the heador slightly below the head in the 3D space. The 3D caption system 210may curve the 3D caption around the head based on contours of the head.In particular, a more rounded face may result in a 3D caption that ismore straight or curved less around the face or head than when the 3Dcaption is presented on a less rounded face. Namely, a 3D caption may begenerated and a first user with a face having a first curvature may bedetected in the video stream. The 3D caption may be curved by a firstextent around the curvature of the first user's face. Then, a seconduser with a face having a second curvature may be detected. The secondcurvature may be smaller than the first curvature. In such cases, thesame 3D caption may be presented with a smaller extent than the firstextent around the curvature of the second user's face.

FIGS. 6-7 are flowcharts illustrating example operations of the 3Dcaption system in performing methods 600 and 700 for generating amessage that includes a 3D caption, according to example embodiments.The methods 600 and 700 may be embodied in computer-readableinstructions for execution by one or more processors such that theoperations of the methods 600 and 700 may be performed in part or inwhole by the functional components of the 3D caption system 210;accordingly, the methods 600 and 700 are described below by way ofexample with reference thereto. However, it shall be appreciated that atleast some of the operations of the methods 600 and 700 may be deployedon various other hardware configurations and the methods 600 and 700 arenot intended to be limited to the 3D caption system 210.

The preview interface 214 includes a presentation of a 3D captiongenerated based on the one or more text characters input by the user.The 3D caption is a 3D representation of the one or more text charactersinput by the user. The 3D caption may be rendered at a position in a 3Dspace captured in the camera feed that is based on a detected referencesurface in the 3D space such as a ground or floor surface. For example,the 3D caption system may render the 3D caption such that it appears tobe attached to the detected reference surface or face.

At operation 602, the 3D caption system 210 receives a video feed from acamera of a user device. For example, the 3D caption system 210 receivesand displays a camera feed received from a rear-facing camera of theclient device 102.

At operation 604, the 3D caption system 210 detects a face in the videofeed. For example, the 3D caption system 210 detects that a user's faceis present in the camera feed of the rear-facing camera.

At operation 606, the 3D caption system 210 retrieves athree-dimensional caption in response to detecting the face in the videofeed. For example, the 3D caption system 210 receives a user input thattypes in letters of words or phrases to added to a 3D caption. Inanother example, the 3D caption system 210 determines a current context(e.g., the current time, time of day, location, date, or day of theweek) and retrieves a prepopulated string of text based on which the 3Dcaption is automatically generated.

At operation 610, the 3D caption system 210 modifies the video feed toinclude the 3D caption at a position in 3D space of the video feedproximate to the face. For example, the 3D caption system 210 displaysthe 3D caption on top of the head of the user whose face is depicted inthe camera feed so the 3D caption appears as a crown on the user's head.The 3D caption can be curved around the user's head.

At option 612, the 3D caption system 210 displays the modified videofeed that includes the face and the 3D caption. For example, the 3Dcaption system 210 may track movement of the face in the video streamand maintain the 3D caption in a static placement relative to the user'sface so the 3D caption moves together with the user's face.

At option 702, the 3D caption system 210 receives a video feed from acamera of a user device. For example, the 3D caption system 210 receivesand displays a camera feed received from a front-facing camera of theclient device 102.

At option 704, the 3D caption system 210 receives a request to add a 3Dcaption to the video feed. For example, the 3D caption system 210receives a user selection of an option to add a 3D caption. The 3Dcaption system 210 dims the screen and presents a cursor allowing theuser to input one or more characters of a word or phrase in 2D based onwhich the 3D caption is generated.

At option 706, the 3D caption system 210 identifies a graphical elementthat is associated with context of the 3D caption. For example, the 3Dcaption system 210 searches a database of graphical elements to identifya graphical element that is associated with the words or phrases in the3D caption. In some cases, the 3D caption system 210 searches a databaseof contexts associated with words or phrases. Then the 3D caption system210 retrieves a matching context and searches another database thatassociates different contexts with different graphical elements toidentify a graphical element associated with the 3D caption.

At option 710, the 3D caption system 210 displays the 3D caption and theidentified graphical element in the video feed at a position in 3D spaceof the video feed proximate to the face depicted in the video feed. Forexample, the 3D caption system 210 duplicates the retrieved graphicalelement (e.g., an emoji) and presents each instance of the duplicatedgraphical element on a given side of the 3D caption. Namely, a firstgraphical element may be positioned on a left side of the 3D caption anda second graphical element (that is a duplicate of the first graphicalelement) may be positioned on a right side of the 3D caption.

FIG. 8 is an interface diagram that illustrates a user interface 1000provided by the messaging system 100, according to some embodiments.User interface 1000 includes a LENS carousel from which a user mayinitiate functionality of the 3D caption system 210 through selection oficon 1002. As shown, the LENS carousel is overlaid upon a 3D spacecaptured within a camera feed produced by a camera of a computing device(e.g., a client device 102).

Consistent with some embodiments, upon receiving a user selection of theicon 1002, a user is presented with an editing interface configured forcreating and editing a 3D caption. For example, upon receiving a userselection of the icon 1102, the 3D caption system 210 may cause displayof a user interface 1100 illustrated in FIG. 9 . As shown in FIG. 9 ,the user interface 1100 includes a keyboard and a blinking cursoroverlaid upon the 3D space captured within the camera feed. In somecases, upon receiving a user selection of the icon 1002, the keyboard ofuser interface 1100 is animated up from the bottom of the screen. Astyle carousel (that includes a menu listing various styles, such asround, spooky, bubble, 8-bit, and so forth) is then animated in afterthe keyboard is animated up. Together with the keyboard, a color pickerthat includes various colors is also animated into the screen to allowthe user to swipe up/down on the screen using their finger to graduallyor quickly change the color of the text input for the 3D caption. Thestyle carousel and color picker are shown and described in FIG. 14A. Theuser may use the keyboard to input one or more text characters thatprovide a basis for a 3D caption to be rendered within the 3D space. Theuser interface 1100 is an example of the editing interface 212. In somecases, the language of the keyboard can be changed using a specifiedoption on the screen.

As shown in FIG. 10 , upon receiving input from the user (e.g., enteredvia the keyboard), the user interface 1100 is updated to present arepresentation of the input text (“Typing on the screen”). Within theuser interface 1100, a 2D representation of the user input is renderedat the foreground of the camera feed of the client device 102. Inessence, the 2D representation of the user input is a 2D representationof a 3D caption. In other words, the 2D representation of the user inputis a preview of the 3D caption. In some cases, the 2D representationscreen used to type in the text is presented in a dimmed manner (e.g.,with less brightness) than the camera feed presented on the displaybefore the user selected the icon 1002. Namely, in response to receivingthe user selection of icon 1002, the 3D caption system 210 dims thedisplay and presents a cursor allowing the user to input a 2D textstring.

Consistent with some embodiments, a user of the client device 102 mayaccess a preview interface (e.g., preview interface 214) that includes apreview of the 3D caption by providing an input such as changing anorientation of the client device 102 (e.g., changing the orientation ofthe camera from pointing upward to pointing downward) or by selecting aninterface element (e.g., a button) presented within the previewinterface 214.

FIG. 11 illustrates an interface 1300 that includes a preview of a 3Dcaption generated based on user input (e.g., user input provided via theinterface 1100). The interface 1300 is an example of the previewinterface 214. As noted above, the user may access the interface 1300 byproviding an input such as a change in orientation. As shown in FIG. 11, upon detecting a reference surface (e.g., the ground) in the 3D spacecaptured within the camera feed (e.g., based on a change of orientationof the computing device), a 3D caption based on the user's authored textis rendered within the 3D space captured within the camera feed. Asshown, the 3D text object is rendered with respect to a referencesurface in the 3D space. That is, the 3D text object, as rendered, isoriented within the 3D space at a position relative to the referencesurface (e.g., the ground). Rendering the 3D object in this manner makesit appear attached to a real-world surface captured within the camerafeed. In an example, if the rear-facing camera is used to capture anddisplay the camera feed, the 3D caption is positioned on a surface, suchas the ground, in the camera feed. If the front-facing camera is used tocapture and display the camera feed, the 3D caption is added to the facedepicted in the camera feed.

FIGS. 12A-12C illustrate an interface, which is an example of thepreview interface 214. As shown in FIGS. 12A-12C, as a user is editing a3D caption while accessing the preview interface 214, the user may movethe computing device away from the caption and the 3D caption system 210is able to track the movement and force the 3D caption to follow withinthe 3D space captured within the camera feed of the computing device.For example, the 3D caption system 210 may detect movement of the clientdevice that causes a second 3D space to be captured in the camera feedand animate the 3D caption moving from the first 3D space to the second3D space during the movement of the client device. In this manner, the3D caption system 210 ensures that, while editing, the 3D captionremains visible to the user until they commit a final version of the 3Dcaption. As shown, moving the 3D caption may be rendered with a loweropacity than remaining stationary.

FIGS. 13A-13D are interface diagrams that illustrate an interface 1700,which is an example of a preview interface 214. As shown in FIG. 13A, a3D caption 1702 is rendered within a 3D space at a first position; the3D caption 1702 is rendered such that it appears attached to a referencesurface 1703 (e.g., the ground). As shown in FIG. 13B, throughappropriate interaction with the 3D caption 1702 (e.g., a select anddrag gesture), the user may move the 3D caption 1702 such that it isrendered at a second position within the 3D space.

As shown in FIGS. 13C and 13D, a user may change a scale and rotation ofthe 3D caption 1702 through appropriate interaction with the 3D caption1702. For example, the user can perform a pinch and rotate gesture withtwo fingers on an input touchscreen display on which the camera feed isdisplayed to scale and rotate the 3D caption 1702 on the referencesurface without affecting a layout of the 3D caption 1702.

Once the user is satisfied with the placement and look of a 3D caption,the user may create a message that includes the 3D caption and one ormore images from the camera feed. For example, the user may use theclient device 102 to record a video in which the 3D caption is renderedsuch that it appears attached to a surface in the video.

FIGS. 14A-14B are interface diagrams that illustrate an interfaceaccording to some embodiments. As shown in FIG. 14A, the user ispresented with a style carousel and a color picker menus. The stylecarousel includes an interactive menu of text styles including an optionfor round text, an option for spooky text, an option for bubble text andso forth. In response to receiving a user selection of the bubble textoption, as shown in FIG. 14B, the text style changes to have bubblestyle attributes relative to the text shown in FIG. 14A. The user canalso swipe up/down along the color picker to adjust the color of thetext.

FIG. 15 is an interface diagram that illustrates an interface providedby the messaging system 100, according to some example embodiments.Specifically, after the user selects a “done” option, the 2D text withthe specified attributes (e.g., style and color) is converted to the 3Dcaption and displayed in the camera feed, as shown in FIG. 15 . The usercan then adjust the orientation and position of the 3D caption in 3Dspace. Namely, the user can move the text up/down in the y-axis bypressing and holding two fingers on top of the 3D caption displayed onthe screen and then releasing one of the two fingers. This gestureactivates the option to translate the 3D caption along the y-axisup/down. Specifically, the user can now use the one finger that remainsin contact with the screen to swipe up/down to move the 3D caption inthe y-axis.

FIGS. 16A and 16B are interface diagrams that illustrate variousinterfaces provided by the messaging system 100, according to someexample embodiments. For example, the user can enter text (e.g., theword “pizza”) in FIG. 16A to add to a face depicted in the camera feed(e.g., the camera feed of the front-facing or rear-facing camera) andthen press a “done” button. In response to the user pressing the “done”button, the text entered by the user is converted to a 3D caption andplaced on top of the forehead of the face depicted in the camera feed,as shown in FIG. 16B. The 3D caption system 210 searches for one or moregraphical elements that are associated with the text input by the user.In this case, the 3D caption system 210 found that the word “pizza” isassociated with an emoji that looks like a pizza or a pizza graphicalelement. In response, as shown in FIG. 16B, the 3D caption system 210adds a first pizza graphical element on the user's head on a left sideof the 3D caption and a second pizza graphical element on the user'shead on the right side of the 3D caption.

FIGS. 17A and 17B are interface diagrams that illustrate variousinterfaces provided by the messaging system 100, according to someexample embodiments. The 3D caption system 210 may determine whether theuser is accessing the 3D caption feature for the first time. In responseto determining that the user is accessing the 3D caption feature for thefirst time, the 3D caption system 210 may present a 3D caption in thecamera feed together with an instructional animation (e.g., a 3D hint)on how to adjust the 3D caption, as shown in FIGS. 17A-B. Theinstructional animation shown in FIGS. 17A-B includes a hand thatrepeatedly points to the 3D caption (e.g., the text of the 3D caption)and moves in a particular direction (e.g., towards the user) to indicateto the user that the user can point a finger and tap on the 3D captionto drag and reposition the 3D caption. After the 3D caption system 210receives input from the user that responds to the instructionalanimation to perform the action indicated by the instruction, the 3Dcaption system 210 removes the instructional animation from the displayand allows the user to perform the requested action (e.g., adjusting aposition and/or modifying the 3D caption).

FIGS. 18A-J are interface diagrams that illustrate various interfacesprovided by the messaging system 100, according to some exampleembodiments. In FIG. 18A, a front-facing camera feed is shown and theuser inputs the text string 1810 “haha” in a dimmed screen for use ingenerating a 3D caption. In response to the user selecting a “done”option, the text string 1810 is converted to a 3D caption and presentedon top of the user's head depicted in the camera feed as a 3D caption1820 (FIG. 18B). The 3D caption system 210 found that the word “haha” isassociated with a laughing face emoji. In response, as shown in FIG.18B, the 3D caption system 210 adds a graphical element 1822 thatincludes a first laughing face emoji on the user's head on a left sideof the 3D caption and a second laughing face emoji on the user's head onthe right side of the 3D caption. The user can tap on the 3D caption toedit the caption. As shown in FIG. 18C, the user tapped on the 3Dcaption with the word “haha” and replaces the word “haha” with the word1830 “love”. In response to the user selecting a done option, the textstring is converted to 3D presented on top of the user's head depictedin the camera feed as a 3D caption 1840, as shown in FIG. 18D. The 3Dcaption system 210 found that the word “love” is associated with a heartemoji. In response, as shown in FIG. 18D, the 3D caption system 210 addsa graphical element 1842 that includes a first heart emoji on the user'shead on a left side of the 3D caption and a second heart emoji on theuser's head on the right side of the 3D caption.

While the 3D caption with the heart emojis is presented on top of theuser's face in the camera feed, as shown in FIG. 18D, the user selectsan option to activate a rear-facing camera feed. In response, the camerafeed is replaced by a video feed received from the rear-facing camera inwhich no face is detected or presented. As a result, the 3D captionsystem 210 presents the 3D caption that was previously on the user'shead as 3D caption 1850 above the ground, as shown in FIG. 18E. Also,because a face is no longer present in the video feed, the 3D captionsystem 210 removes the heart emojis or graphical elements that werepresented with the 3D caption when the face was detected in the videofeed of the front-facing camera.

In FIG. 18F, a front-facing camera feed is shown and the user inputs thetext string 1860 “baseball” in a dimmed screen for use in generating a3D caption. In response to the user selecting a done option, the textstring is converted to a 3D caption and presented on top of the user'shead depicted in the camera feed as a 3D text string 1860 caption, asshown in FIG. 18F. The 3D caption system 210 found that the word“baseball” is associated with a baseball emoji. In response, as shown inFIG. 18F, the 3D caption system 210 adds a graphical element 1862 thatincludes a first baseball emoji on the user's head on a left side of the3D caption and a second baseball emoji on the user's head on the rightside of the 3D caption. The user can change the automatically selectedgraphical elements (e.g., the baseballs) shown in FIG. 18F by tapping onthe graphical element 1862. In response to the user tapping on one ofthe baseball emojis shown in FIG. 18F, the 3D caption system 210 dimsthe screen and presents the text of the 3D caption in 2D so the user canedit the text. Together with the text in 2D, the 3D caption system 210presents a graphical element menu 1870 that lists various graphicalelements the user can select to replace the automatically selectedgraphical element, as shown in FIG. 18G. The previously selectedgraphical elements remain displayed in the video feed in the backgroundon top of the user's head as a reference. The user can select analternate graphical element 1872 (e.g., a hat emoji) from the graphicalelement menu. In response, as shown in FIG. 18H, the 3D caption system210 replaces the automatically selected graphical elements with thealternate graphical element 1872. As an example, caption system 210 addsa first hat emoji on the user's head on a left side of the 3D captionand a second hat emoji on the user's head on the right side of the 3Dcaption.

In FIG. 18I, a rear-facing camera feed is shown and the user inputs thetext string “living my best life” in a dimmed screen for use ingenerating a 3D caption. Alternatively, the string for the 3D caption isautomatically populated based on context of the client device 102. Inresponse to the user selecting a done option, the text string isconverted to a 3D caption 1880 presented on top of a surface, as shownin FIG. 18I. The user may pan the rear-facing camera to the right/leftto reveal a face. In response to detecting a face, as shown in FIG. 18J,the 3D caption system 210 transitions and moves the 3D caption 1890 tobeing placed on top of the head (or on the forehead) or in proximity tothe face depicted in the camera feed. Also, the 3D caption system 210searches for and finds one or more graphical elements 1892 associatedwith words or phrases in the 3D caption and adds those graphicalelements to the 3D caption on top of the head or face. The graphicalelements 1892 may be removed when the camera is panned back to provide acamera feed in which a face is no longer detected. In such cases, the 3Dcaption is presented without the graphical elements 1892 on a surfaceinstead of on top of the face or head of the user previously depicted inthe camera feed.

FIG. 19 is a block diagram illustrating an example software architecture1906, which may be used in conjunction with various hardwarearchitectures herein described. FIG. 19 is a non-limiting example of asoftware architecture and it will be appreciated that many otherarchitectures may be implemented to facilitate the functionalitydescribed herein. The software architecture 1906 may execute on hardwaresuch as machine 2000 of FIG. 20 that includes, among other things,processors 2004, memory 2014, and input/output (I/O) components 2018. Arepresentative hardware layer 1952 is illustrated and can represent, forexample, the machine 2000 of FIG. 20 . The representative hardware layer1952 includes a processing unit 1954 having associated executableinstructions 1904. Executable instructions 1904 represent the executableinstructions of the software architecture 1906, including implementationof the methods, components, and so forth described herein. The hardwarelayer 1952 also includes memory and/or storage modules memory/storage1956, which also have executable instructions 1904. The hardware layer1952 may also comprise other hardware 1958.

In the example architecture of FIG. 19 , the software architecture 1906may be conceptualized as a stack of layers where each layer providesparticular functionality. For example, the software architecture 1906may include layers such as an operating system 1902, libraries 1920,applications 1916, frameworks/middleware 1918, and a presentation layer1914. Operationally, the applications 1916 and/or other componentswithin the layers may invoke API calls 1908 through the software stackand receive a response as in messages 1912 to the API calls 1908. Thelayers illustrated are representative in nature and not all softwarearchitectures have all layers. For example, some mobile or specialpurpose operating systems may not provide a frameworks/middleware 1918,while others may provide such a layer. Other software architectures mayinclude additional or different layers.

The operating system 1902 may manage hardware resources and providecommon services. The operating system 1902 may include, for example, akernel 1922, services 1924, and drivers 1926. The kernel 1922 may act asan abstraction layer between the hardware and the other software layers.For example, the kernel 1922 may be responsible for memory management,processor management (e.g., scheduling), component management,networking, security settings, and so on. The services 1924 may provideother common services for the other software layers. The drivers 1926are responsible for controlling or interfacing with the underlyinghardware. For instance, the drivers 1926 include display drivers, cameradrivers, Bluetooth® drivers, flash memory drivers, serial communicationdrivers (e.g., Universal Serial Bus (USB) drivers), Wi-Fi® drivers,audio drivers, power management drivers, and so forth depending on thehardware configuration.

The libraries 1920 provide a common infrastructure that is used by theapplications 1916 and/or other components and/or layers. The libraries1920 provide functionality that allows other software components toperform tasks in an easier fashion than to interface directly with theunderlying operating system 1902 functionality (e.g., kernel 1922,services 1924 and/or drivers 1926). The libraries 1920 may includesystem libraries 1944 (e.g., C standard library) that may providefunctions such as memory allocation functions, string manipulationfunctions, mathematical functions, and the like. In addition, thelibraries 1920 may include API libraries 1946 such as media libraries(e.g., libraries to support presentation and manipulation of variousmedia format such as MPREG4, H.264, MP3, AAC, AMR, JPG, PNG), graphicslibraries (e.g., an OpenGL framework that may be used to render 2D and3D in a graphic content on a display), database libraries (e.g., SQLitethat may provide various relational database functions), web libraries(e.g., WebKit that may provide web browsing functionality), and thelike. The libraries 1920 may also include a wide variety of otherlibraries 1948 to provide many other APIs to the applications 1916 andother software components/modules.

The frameworks/middleware 1918 (also sometimes referred to asmiddleware) provide a higher-level common infrastructure that may beused by the applications 1916 and/or other software components/modules.For example, the frameworks/middleware 1918 may provide various graphicuser interface (GUI) functions, high-level resource management,high-level location services, and so forth. The frameworks/middleware1918 may provide a broad spectrum of other APIs that may be utilized bythe applications 1916 and/or other software components/modules, some ofwhich may be specific to a particular operating system 1902 or platform.

The applications 1916 include built-in applications 1938 and/orthird-party applications 1940. Examples of representative built-inapplications 1938 may include, but are not limited to, a contactsapplication, a browser application, a book reader application, alocation application, a media application, a messaging application,and/or a game application. Third-party applications 1940 may include anapplication developed using the ANDROID™ or IOS™ software developmentkit (SDK) by an entity other than the vendor of the particular platform,and may be mobile software running on a mobile operating system such asIOS™, ANDROID™, WINDOWS® Phone, or other mobile operating systems. Thethird-party applications 1940 may invoke the API calls 1908 provided bythe mobile operating system (such as operating system 1902) tofacilitate functionality described herein.

The applications 1916 may use built-in operating system functions (e.g.,kernel 1922, services 1924, and/or drivers 1926), libraries 1920, andframeworks/middleware 1918 to create user interfaces to interact withusers of the system. Alternatively, or additionally, in some systemsinteractions with a user may occur through a presentation layer, such aspresentation layer 1914. In these systems, the application/component“logic” can be separated from the aspects of the application/componentthat interact with a user.

FIG. 20 is a block diagram illustrating components of a machine 2000,according to some example embodiments, able to read instructions from amachine-readable medium (e.g., a machine-readable storage medium) andperform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein.Specifically, FIG. 20 shows a diagrammatic representation of the machine2000 in the example form of a computer system, within which instructions2010 (e.g., software, a program, an application, an applet, an app, orother executable code) for causing the machine 2000 to perform any oneor more of the methodologies discussed herein may be executed. As such,the instructions 2010 may be used to implement modules or componentsdescribed herein. The instructions 2010 transform the general,non-programmed machine 2000 into a particular machine 2000 programmed tocarry out the described and illustrated functions in the mannerdescribed. In alternative embodiments, the machine 2000 operates as astandalone device or may be coupled (e.g., networked) to other machines.In a networked deployment, the machine 2000 may operate in the capacityof a server machine or a client machine in a server-client networkenvironment, or as a peer machine in a peer-to-peer (or distributed)network environment. The machine 2000 may comprise, but not be limitedto, a server computer, a client computer, a personal computer (PC), atablet computer, a laptop computer, a netbook, a set-top box (STB), apersonal digital assistant (PDA), an entertainment media system, acellular telephone, a smart phone, a mobile device, a wearable device(e.g., a smart watch), a smart home device (e.g., a smart appliance),other smart devices, a web appliance, a network router, a networkswitch, a network bridge, or any machine capable of executing theinstructions 2010, sequentially or otherwise, that specify actions to betaken by machine 2000. Further, while only a single machine 2000 isillustrated, the term “machine” shall also be taken to include acollection of machines that individually or jointly execute theinstructions 2010 to perform any one or more of the methodologiesdiscussed herein.

The machine 2000 may include processors 2004, memory memory/storage2006, and I/O components 2018, which may be configured to communicatewith each other such as via a bus 2002. In an example embodiment, theprocessors 2004 (e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), a reducedinstruction set computing (RISC) processor, a complex instruction setcomputing (CISC) processor, a graphics processing unit (GPU), a digitalsignal processor (DSP), an application-specific integrated circuit(ASIC), a radio-frequency integrated circuit (RFIC), another processor,or any suitable combination thereof) may include, for example, aprocessor 2008 and a processor 2012 that may execute the instructions2010. The term “processor” is intended to include multi-core processors2004 that may comprise two or more independent processors (sometimesreferred to as “cores”) that may execute instructions 2010contemporaneously. Although FIG. 20 shows multiple processors 2004, themachine 2000 may include a single processor with a single core, a singleprocessor with multiple cores (e.g., a multi-core processor), multipleprocessors with a single core, multiple processors with multiple cores,or any combination thereof.

The memory/storage 2006 may include a memory 2014, such as a mainmemory, or other memory storage, and a storage unit 2016, bothaccessible to the processors 2004 such as via the bus 2002. The storageunit 2016 and memory 2014 store the instructions 2010 embodying any oneor more of the methodologies or functions described herein. Theinstructions 2010 may also reside, completely or partially, within thememory 2014, within the storage unit 2016, within at least one of theprocessors 2004 (e.g., within the processor's cache memory), or anysuitable combination thereof, during execution thereof by the machine2000. Accordingly, the memory 2014, the storage unit 2016, and thememory of processors 2004 are examples of machine-readable media.

The I/O components 2018 may include a wide variety of components toreceive input, provide output, produce output, transmit information,exchange information, capture measurements, and so on. The specific I/Ocomponents 2018 that are included in a particular machine 2000 willdepend on the type of machine. For example, portable machines such asmobile phones will likely include a touch input device or other suchinput mechanisms, while a headless server machine will likely notinclude such a touch input device. It will be appreciated that the I/Ocomponents 2018 may include many other components that are not shown inFIG. 20 . The I/O components 2018 are grouped according to functionalitymerely for simplifying the following discussion and the grouping is inno way limiting. In various example embodiments, the I/O components 2018may include output components 2026 and input components 2028. The outputcomponents 2026 may include visual components (e.g., a display such as aplasma display panel (PDP), a light emitting diode (LED) display, aliquid crystal display (LCD), a projector, or a cathode ray tube (CRT)),acoustic components (e.g., speakers), haptic components (e.g., avibratory motor, resistance mechanisms), other signal generators, and soforth. The input components 2028 may include alphanumeric inputcomponents (e.g., a keyboard, a touch screen configured to receivealphanumeric input, a photo-optical keyboard, or other alphanumericinput components), point-based input components (e.g., a mouse, atouchpad, a trackball, a joystick, a motion sensor, or other pointinginstrument), tactile input components (e.g., a physical button, a touchscreen that provides location and/or force of touches or touch gestures,or other tactile input components), audio input components (e.g., amicrophone), and the like.

In further example embodiments, the I/O components 2018 may includebiometric components 2030, motion components 2034, environmentalcomponents 2036, or position components 2038 among a wide array of othercomponents. For example, the biometric components 2030 may includecomponents to detect expressions (e.g., hand expressions, facialexpressions, vocal expressions, body gestures, or eye tracking), measurebiosignals (e.g., blood pressure, heart rate, body temperature,perspiration, or brain waves), identify a person (e.g., voiceidentification, retinal identification, facial identification,fingerprint identification, or electroencephalogram basedidentification), and the like. The motion components 2034 may includeacceleration sensor components (e.g., accelerometer), gravitation sensorcomponents, rotation sensor components (e.g., gyroscope), and so forth.The environmental components 2036 may include, for example, illuminationsensor components (e.g., photometer), temperature sensor components(e.g., one or more thermometer that detect ambient temperature),humidity sensor components, pressure sensor components (e.g.,barometer), acoustic sensor components (e.g., one or more microphonesthat detect background noise), proximity sensor components (e.g.,infrared sensors that detect nearby objects), gas sensors (e.g., gasdetection sensors to detection concentrations of hazardous gases forsafety or to measure pollutants in the atmosphere), or other componentsthat may provide indications, measurements, or signals corresponding toa surrounding physical environment. The position components 2038 mayinclude location sensor components (e.g., a GPS receiver component),altitude sensor components (e.g., altimeters or barometers that detectair pressure from which altitude may be derived), orientation sensorcomponents (e.g., magnetometers), and the like.

Communication may be implemented using a wide variety of technologies.The I/O components 2018 may include communication components 2040operable to couple the machine 2000 to a network 2032 or devices 2020via coupling 2024 and coupling 2022, respectively. For example, thecommunication components 2040 may include a network interface componentor other suitable device to interface with the network 2032. In furtherexamples, communication components 2040 may include wired communicationcomponents, wireless communication components, cellular communicationcomponents, Near Field Communication (NFC) components, Bluetooth®components (e.g., Bluetooth® Low Energy), Wi-Fi® components, and othercommunication components to provide communication via other modalities.The devices 2020 may be another machine or any of a wide variety ofperipheral devices (e.g., a peripheral device coupled via a USB).

Moreover, the communication components 2040 may detect identifiers orinclude components operable to detect identifiers. For example, thecommunication components 2040 may include Radio Frequency Identification(RFID) tag reader components, NFC smart tag detection components,optical reader components (e.g., an optical sensor to detectone-dimensional bar codes such as Universal Product Code (UPC) bar code,multi-dimensional bar codes such as Quick Response (QR) code, Azteccode, Data Matrix, Dataglyph, MaxiCode, PDF417, Ultra Code, UCC RSS-2Dbar code, and other optical codes), or acoustic detection components(e.g., microphones to identify tagged audio signals). In addition, avariety of information may be derived via the communication components2040, such as, location via Internet Protocol (IP) geo-location,location via Wi-Fi® signal triangulation, location via detecting a NFCbeacon signal that may indicate a particular location, and so forth.

Glossary

“CARRIER SIGNAL” in this context refers to any intangible medium that iscapable of storing, encoding, or carrying instructions for execution bythe machine, and includes digital or analog communications signals orother intangible medium to facilitate communication of suchinstructions. Instructions may be transmitted or received over thenetwork using a transmission medium via a network interface device andusing any one of a number of well-known transfer protocols.

“CLIENT DEVICE” in this context refers to any machine that interfaces toa communications network to obtain resources from one or more serversystems or other client devices. A client device may be, but is notlimited to, a mobile phone, desktop computer, laptop, PDAs, smartphones, tablets, ultra books, netbooks, laptops, multi-processorsystems, microprocessor-based or programmable consumer electronics, gameconsoles, set-top boxes, or any other communication device that a usermay use to access a network.

“COMMUNICATIONS NETWORK” in this context refers to one or more portionsof a network that may be an ad hoc network, an intranet, an extranet, avirtual private network (VPN), a local area network (LAN), a wirelessLAN (WLAN), a wide area network (WAN), a wireless WAN (WWAN), ametropolitan area network (MAN), the Internet, a portion of theInternet, a portion of the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN), aplain old telephone service (POTS) network, a cellular telephonenetwork, a wireless network, a Wi-Fi® network, another type of network,or a combination of two or more such networks. For example, a network ora portion of a network may include a wireless or cellular network andthe coupling may be a Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) connection, aGlobal System for Mobile communications (GSM) connection, or other typeof cellular or wireless coupling. In this example, the coupling mayimplement any of a variety of types of data transfer technology, such asSingle Carrier Radio Transmission Technology (1×RTT), Evolution-DataOptimized (EVDO) technology, General Packet Radio Service (GPRS)technology, Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution (EDGE) technology,third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) including 3G, fourthgeneration wireless (4G) networks, Universal Mobile TelecommunicationsSystem (UMTS), High Speed Packet Access (HSPA), WorldwideInteroperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX), Long Term Evolution (LTE)standard, others defined by various standard setting organizations,other long range protocols, or other data transfer technology.

“EPHEMERAL MESSAGE” in this context refers to a message that isaccessible for a time-limited duration. An ephemeral message may be atext, an image, a video, and the like. The access time for the ephemeralmessage may be set by the message sender. Alternatively, the access timemay be a default setting or a setting specified by the recipient.Regardless of the setting technique, the message is transitory.

“MACHINE-READABLE MEDIUM” in this context refers to a component, deviceor other tangible media able to store instructions and data temporarilyor permanently and may include, but is not be limited to, random-accessmemory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), buffer memory, flash memory,optical media, magnetic media, cache memory, other types of storage(e.g., Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory (EEPROM)) and/or anysuitable combination thereof. The term “machine-readable medium” shouldbe taken to include a single medium or multiple media (e.g., acentralized or distributed database, or associated caches and servers)able to store instructions. The term “machine-readable medium” shallalso be taken to include any medium, or combination of multiple media,that is capable of storing instructions (e.g., code) for execution by amachine, such that the instructions, when executed by one or moreprocessors of the machine, cause the machine to perform any one or moreof the methodologies described herein. Accordingly, a “machine-readablemedium” refers to a single storage apparatus or device, as well as“cloud-based” storage systems or storage networks that include multiplestorage apparatus or devices. The term “machine-readable medium”excludes signals per se.

“COMPONENT” in this context refers to a device, physical entity, orlogic having boundaries defined by function or subroutine calls, branchpoints, APIs, or other technologies that provide for the partitioning ormodularization of particular processing or control functions. Componentsmay be combined via their interfaces with other components to carry outa machine process. A component may be a packaged functional hardwareunit designed for use with other components and a part of a program thatusually performs a particular function of related functions. Componentsmay constitute either software components (e.g., code embodied on amachine-readable medium) or hardware components.

A “hardware component” is a tangible unit capable of performing certainoperations and may be configured or arranged in a certain physicalmanner. In various example embodiments, one or more computer systems(e.g., a standalone computer system, a client computer system, or aserver computer system) or one or more hardware components of a computersystem (e.g., a processor or a group of processors) may be configured bysoftware (e.g., an application or application portion) as a hardwarecomponent that operates to perform certain operations as describedherein. A hardware component may also be implemented mechanically,electronically, or any suitable combination thereof. For example, ahardware component may include dedicated circuitry or logic that ispermanently configured to perform certain operations. A hardwarecomponent may be a special-purpose processor, such as aField-Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) or an Application SpecificIntegrated Circuit (ASIC). A hardware component may also includeprogrammable logic or circuitry that is temporarily configured bysoftware to perform certain operations. For example, a hardwarecomponent may include software executed by a general-purpose processoror other programmable processor.

Once configured by such software, hardware components become specificmachines (or specific components of a machine) uniquely tailored toperform the configured functions and are no longer general-purposeprocessors. It will be appreciated that the decision to implement ahardware component mechanically, in dedicated and permanently configuredcircuitry, or in temporarily configured circuitry (e.g., configured bysoftware) may be driven by cost and time considerations. Accordingly,the phrase “hardware component” (or “hardware-implemented component”)should be understood to encompass a tangible entity, be that an entitythat is physically constructed, permanently configured (e.g.,hardwired), or temporarily configured (e.g., programmed) to operate in acertain manner or to perform certain operations described herein.

Considering embodiments in which hardware components are temporarilyconfigured (e.g., programmed), each of the hardware components need notbe configured or instantiated at any one instance in time. For example,where a hardware component comprises a general-purpose processorconfigured by software to become a special-purpose processor, thegeneral-purpose processor may be configured as respectively differentspecial-purpose processors (e.g., comprising different hardwarecomponents) at different times. Software accordingly configures aparticular processor or processors, for example, to constitute aparticular hardware component at one instance of time and to constitutea different hardware component at a different instance of time.

Hardware components can provide information to, and receive informationfrom, other hardware components. Accordingly, the described hardwarecomponents may be regarded as being communicatively coupled. Wheremultiple hardware components exist contemporaneously, communications maybe achieved through signal transmission (e.g., over appropriate circuitsand buses) between or among two or more of the hardware components. Inembodiments in which multiple hardware components are configured orinstantiated at different times, communications between such hardwarecomponents may be achieved, for example, through the storage andretrieval of information in memory structures to which the multiplehardware components have access. For example, one hardware component mayperform an operation and store the output of that operation in a memorydevice to which it is communicatively coupled. A further hardwarecomponent may then, at a later time, access the memory device toretrieve and process the stored output. Hardware components may alsoinitiate communications with input or output devices, and can operate ona resource (e.g., a collection of information).

The various operations of example methods described herein may beperformed, at least partially, by one or more processors that aretemporarily configured (e.g., by software) or permanently configured toperform the relevant operations. Whether temporarily or permanentlyconfigured, such processors may constitute processor-implementedcomponents that operate to perform one or more operations or functionsdescribed herein. As used herein, “processor-implemented component”refers to a hardware component implemented using one or more processors.Similarly, the methods described herein may be at least partiallyprocessor-implemented, with a particular processor or processors beingan example of hardware. For example, at least some of the operations ofa method may be performed by one or more processors orprocessor-implemented components. Moreover, the one or more processorsmay also operate to support performance of the relevant operations in a“cloud computing” environment or as a “software as a service” (SaaS).For example, at least some of the operations may be performed by a groupof computers (as examples of machines including processors), with theseoperations being accessible via a network (e.g., the Internet) and viaone or more appropriate interfaces (e.g., an API). The performance ofcertain of the operations may be distributed among the processors, notonly residing within a single machine, but deployed across a number ofmachines. In some example embodiments, the processors orprocessor-implemented components may be located in a single geographiclocation (e.g., within a home environment, an office environment, or aserver farm). In other example embodiments, the processors orprocessor-implemented components may be distributed across a number ofgeographic locations.

“PROCESSOR” in this context refers to any circuit or virtual circuit (aphysical circuit emulated by logic executing on an actual processor)that manipulates data values according to control signals (e.g.,“commands”, “op codes”, “machine code”, etc.) and which producescorresponding output signals that are applied to operate a machine. Aprocessor may, for example, be a Central Processing Unit (CPU), aReduced Instruction Set Computing (RISC) processor, a ComplexInstruction Set Computing (CISC) processor, a Graphics Processing Unit(GPU), a Digital Signal Processor (DSP), an ASIC, a Radio-FrequencyIntegrated Circuit (RFIC) or any combination thereof. A processor mayfurther be a multi-core processor having two or more independentprocessors (sometimes referred to as “cores”) that may executeinstructions contemporaneously.

“TIMESTAMP” in this context refers to a sequence of characters orencoded information identifying when a certain event occurred, forexample giving a date and time of day, sometimes accurate to a smallfraction of a second.

What is claimed is:
 1. A system comprising: at least one hardwareprocessor; a memory storing instructions which, when executed by the atleast one hardware processor, cause the at least one hardware processorto perform operations comprising: receiving a video from a first cameradirected towards a first direction; retrieving a virtual element;displaying the virtual element on the video; and selectively displayingone or more related graphical elements together with the virtual elementon the video based on a determination of which of the first camera and asecond camera, directed towards a second direction different from thefirst direction, is being used to capture the video.
 2. The system ofclaim 1, the operations comprising: in response to determining that thefirst camera is a front-facing camera being used to capture the video,modifying the video to include a virtual element comprising a 3D captionwith the one or more related graphical elements; receiving a request toactivate the second camera to capture video; and in response toreceiving the request to activate the second camera: removing the one ormore related graphical elements from the video; and modifying a displayposition of the virtual element comprising the 3D caption.
 3. The systemof claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise: detecting a face inthe video, wherein the virtual element is retrieved in response todetecting the face.
 4. The system of claim 1, wherein the operationsfurther comprise: determining that the first camera being used tocapture the video is a front-facing camera, the virtual element with oneor more related graphical elements being displayed at a position in 3Dspace of the video proximate to a face in response to determining thatthe front-facing camera is being used.
 5. The system of claim 1, whereinthe operations further comprise: modifying the video captured by thesecond camera to transition the virtual element to be displayed on asurface depicted in the video from being displayed proximate to a face;in response to receiving a request to access a virtual element featureafter less than a threshold amount of time has elapsed since a videosegment comprising the modified video was stored, restoring at least oneof a style, text, color, or graphical element of the virtual element,for display; and in response to determining that the request to accessthe virtual element feature is received after more than the thresholdamount of time has elapsed since the video segment was stored,presenting a virtual element entry interface with default parameters. 6.The system of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise:receiving a request to access a virtual element manipulation feature;determining that request is a request to access the virtual elementmanipulation feature for a first time; and presenting, in the video, a3D hint in front of the virtual element that animates repeatedlyinstructions for modifying placement of the virtual element.
 7. Thesystem of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise: detectingcontact between a screen in which the video is displayed and two fingersof a user, the contact being at a location in the screen in which thevirtual element is displayed; after detecting the contact, determiningthat one of the two fingers has been released from contacting thescreen; and in response to determining that one of the two fingers hasbeen released from contacting the screen, providing an option totranslate a position of the virtual element up and down along a y-axis.8. The system of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise:determining that resources of a user device satisfy a resourcethreshold; and in response to determining that the resources of the userdevice satisfy the resource threshold, presenting a virtual elementmodification option to modify at least one of a text style or color ofthe virtual element.
 9. The system of claim 1, wherein the operationsfurther comprise curving the virtual element around a top of a face. 10.The system of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise:determining that a face is no longer detected in the video; and inresponse to determining that the face is no longer detected in thevideo, disabling a feature that enables addition of virtual elements.11. The system of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise:detecting first and second faces in the video; determining that thesecond face includes a greater number of pixels than the first face; andin response to determining that the second face includes the greaternumber of pixels than the first face, modifying the video to include thevirtual element at a position in three-dimensional space of the videoproximate to the second face instead of the first face.
 12. The systemof claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise: determining contextassociated with the video; and automatically populating text of thevirtual element based on the context.
 13. The system of claim 1, whereinthe operations further comprise: detecting input indicating that a usertapped on a screen at a position of the virtual element that isdisplayed in the video; and in response to detecting the input,presenting text of the virtual element in 2D to enable the user tomodify the text.
 14. The system of claim 13, wherein the operationsfurther comprise dimming the screen in which the text is presented tofocus the user on the text.
 15. The system of claim 13, wherein theoperations further comprise: determining that the user tapped on thescreen at a location between two characters of the text; and positioninga cursor to modify the text starting from the location between the twocharacters of the text in response to determining that the user tappedon the screen at the location between the two characters of the text.16. The system of claim 13, wherein the operations further compriseenabling adjustment of a size and layout of the text using a pinchgesture based on a width of the text.
 17. A method comprising: receivinga video from a first camera directed towards a first direction;retrieving a virtual element; displaying the virtual element on thevideo; and selectively displaying one or more related graphical elementstogether with the virtual element on the video based on a determinationof which of the first camera and a second camera, directed towards asecond direction different from the first direction, is being used tocapture the video.
 18. The method of claim 17, further comprising: inresponse to determining that the first camera is a front-facing camerabeing used to capture the video, modifying the video to include avirtual element comprising a 3D caption with the one or more relatedgraphical elements; receiving a request to activate the second camera tocapture video; and in response to receiving the request to activate thesecond camera: removing the one or more related graphical elements fromthe video; and modifying a display position of the virtual elementcomprising the 3D caption.
 19. The method of claim 17, furthercomprising: detecting a face in the video, wherein the virtual elementis retrieved in response to detecting the face.
 20. A non-transitorymachine-readable medium storing instructions which, when executed by oneor more processors of a machine, cause the machine to perform operationscomprising: receiving a video from a first camera directed towards afirst direction; retrieving a virtual element; displaying the virtualelement on the video; and selectively displaying one or more relatedgraphical elements together with the virtual element on the video basedon a determination of which of the first camera and a second camera,directed towards a second direction different from the first direction,is being used to capture the video.